Finding Meaning Through Awe

Instructions

Awe is a fundamental part of human existence and can help us become aware of what is most meaningful to us. Note that while most people experience awe, the sources that give rise to this experience tend to differ to varying degrees for people of different cultures. Awe experiences can also be tinged with fear, such as the wrath of Mother Nature, inducing feelings of powerlessness. If you are concerned that recalling a moment of awe might bring up challenging memories for students, consider using “invitational” language when introducing the practice.

This practice is meant to help you and your students gain greater insights as to what inspires awe in your students, offering ideas for infusing more meaning into both their lives and their academic learning.

• Before you start:
  • Place nine large pieces of paper around the room, each labeled with one of the eight awe categories: Transcendence, Big Ideas, Nature, the Life Cycle, Moral Beauty, Visual Design, Collective Effervescence, and Music. Label the ninth piece of paper “Other.” Students will add post-its to these large papers as part of this activity.
• Introduce the concept of awe to students.
  • Awe is the emotion we feel when we are in the presence of something vast and mysterious that we don’t understand.
• Share the benefits of awe with students:
  • The experience of awe can open us up to recognizing what gives meaning and purpose to our lives.
  • Awe can also help us feel connected to other people or to something larger than ourselves, helping us to see more clearly how everything is interconnected.
  • Awe can help us to feel less stressed, and improve both our mental and physical well-being.
• Share the “8 Wonders of Awe” poster with students, talking through each wonder. You might share your own moment of awe that falls under one of these categories.
  • Scientists who study awe have found that people usually experience awe through one of the following things. They call these the “8 Wonders of Awe.”
  • #1: Transcendence: Reaching beyond our normal understanding of life through experiences (e.g., religious, spiritual, mystical) that foster a sense of meaning in our lives.
    #2 Big Ideas: Reveling in philosophical insights, scientific discoveries, mathematical equations, systems thinking, or personal realizations.
    #3 Nature: Basking in the clouds, the ocean, waves, trees, birds, gardens, a quiet walk along the lake, the night sky full of stars, or a run through vast sand dunes.
    #4 The Life Cycle: Appreciating cycles of birth, growth, decay, death, and rebirth, like a child’s birth, a caterpillar’s metamorphosis, or a family’s continuity—from ancestors to descendants.
    #5 Moral Beauty: Responding with emotion to acts of kindness, charity, self-sacrifice, or courage.
    #6 Visual Design: Admiring the complex designs and sacred geometries of visual art, architecture, and nature.
    #7 Collective Effervescence: Becoming aware of a larger “We” during a graduation ceremony or a wedding dance; while celebrating a holiday with fireworks or cheering on a favorite sports team.
    #8 Music: Listening to or playing music with others; tapping our feet, swaying our hips, or clapping our hands in unison with people.
• Students interview a partner about an experience of awe.
  • Divide students into pairs for interviews.
  • Explain to students that they are each going to have five minutes to interview each other to learn more about where they find awe in their own lives. Give each pair of students a copy of the Awe Interview Questions or post them on the board:
    • Tell me about an experience of awe that you’ve had. If you don’t think you’ve experienced awe, what is an experience you’ve had that amazed you or that made you wonder?
    • Does this experience relate to one of the “8 Wonders” of awe? If so, which one? If not, what would you call your “9th Wonder” of awe?
    • What does this experience tell you about what is important or meaningful to you? For example, if you experienced awe through nature, what does that tell you about your relationship to nature? If you experienced awe through an act of moral beauty, does that tell you that doing good in the world is important to you?
    • Do you think your culture or family upbringing has influenced how you experience awe? If so, how?
  • After the first five minutes, cue students that they should switch roles.
• Students share their experiences of awe.
• After the students have had time to interview each other, give each student a post-it note.
• Ask students to write a brief one or two-word description of what brings them awe on the post-it note.
• Next, have students place their post-it note on the corresponding “wonder” poster in the room. If their experience does not fit into one of the “8 Wonders,” have them place their post-it note on the poster labeled “Other.”
• Have students do a “Gallery Walk” (walking from poster to poster) to read other students’ experiences of awe.

Closure

• Have students discuss in pairs, small groups, or as a whole class what they discovered during the Gallery Walk and through this activity. Use the following questions as a guide:
  • What did you notice about what you read?
  • Did anything surprise you?
  • What were some things that the responses had in common? Where did they differ? What might these similarities and/or differences tell us about human nature? For example, how much do our family or cultural backgrounds play a role in our experience of awe? Does age play a role, or our personal interests?
  • What did you discover about what is meaningful or important to you? How might you use this discovery in your learning or academic work? How might you use it to make a positive contribution to the world?

Source

Dacher Keltner, Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley

Evidence That It Works

A study of a diverse group of 2,000 high school and young adult students showed that when students attach a personally meaningful purpose that is prosocial in nature to what they’re learning, they are more likely to persevere on a boring academic task and improve their academic outcomes.

And awe may help students discover what is personally meaningful to them. In a study of 187 university students from Shanghai, China, participants who watched an “awe” video about nature or childbirth (versus a neutral video or a video clip of grass moving in the wind) were more likely to act in ways that help the environment. Similar studies have found that awe can encourage prosocial values and actions in students, helping to guide students towards a prosocial purpose.

Why Does It Matter?

Awe is a natural part of learning. It inspires us, making us feel connected to something larger than ourselves and changing how we think about our place in the world. In other words, awe can help students find meaning in what they’re learning—a powerful tool for motivation and engagement. Here is a beautiful story from Humans of New York about a student who most likely experienced awe during a science experiment.

Awe can also help students who feel bogged down by stress caused by worries of belonging or anxieties around academic performance, ultimately stifling their sense of creativity and wonder. Feeling awe can help students reawaken those feelings of inspiration and curiosity which can then improve academic outcomes.

Ultimately, helping students shape lives of meaning is one of the noblest aspects of teaching. As acclaimed adolescent development expert William Damon writes, “This is how all young people should feel about life when they are starting out. Idealism, high hopes, enthusiasm, and a sense of awe and wonder in exploring the world around them.”